Xeround brings MySQL into Heroku's Ruby-based cloud

An
interesting challenge for organizations considering a cloud-based
implementation of one or more workloads is where to put the structured
data (read database-based data). It would seem logical to place that
data somewhere in the cloud as well.

The questions of which database and which cloud come up pretty
quickly. Maximum agility and portability would seem to require either
selecting a single proprietary database that is pervasive or selecting
an open source database that is likely to be available in most cloud
environments. Xeround is a proponent of the second approach and has worked to make MySQL available in Amazon's EC2 environment. Recently, the company added the Heroku Cloud Platform to its list.

What Xeround has to say about adding MySQL to the Heroku platform

Xeround, the Cloud Database company, today announced the
availability of their database service for MySQL-based applications as
an Add-on for the Heroku cloud platform – the most popular PaaS
(Platform-as-a-Service) for Ruby developers.

From the users’ perspective, all they need to do is add the add-on
to their application from within the Heroku environment. This
automatically creates a MySQL-compatible cloud database that easily
connects to their application. Xeround’s cloud database enables Heroku
users to take advantage of a highly available and elastic database that
can grow in size and throughput as required by the application.

Snapshot analysis

MySQL has fought its way to the top of the open source database
market. Sun acquired the company in January 2008. Since Sun appeared to
be pretty supportive of open sources processes and business practices,
the hue and cry seemed pretty muted. When Oracle acquired Sun in April
2009, the MySQL community appeared to hold its breath waiting to see
what Oracle would do with Sun's open source portfolio.

Over time, it appears that Oracle is not all that interested in open
source community development nor is it interested in being a good
partner to the established open source communities that it "bought
into." MySQL is one of those projects.

Xeround continues to focus on the open source version of MySQL and
has launched it into Amazon's and, now, Heroku's clounds. The company's
approach appear to focus on making the database easy to use in a cloud
environment and making it available in many different cloud
environments. This, of course, would make portability from one cloud
service provider to another much easier. It would also make it possible
to have back up environments in several clouds to improve overall
reliability.

While Xeround's plans won't make the MySQL community any more
comfortable with Oracle's commercial plans for the technology, for those
interested in continued use of MySQL and projecting MySQL workloads
into the clouds, what Xeround is doing is attractive and interesting.

If your organization has chosen MySQL as a standard, then Xeround is a company you should know.